Austin Collie-WR-BYU

[Colonel_Reb]

Austin is still leading the nation in receiving yardage, with almost no press coverage to speak of. He is alsoa finalist for theBiletnikoff Award. Here's his bio:

Wide Receiver
6-2, 206, Jr.
El Dorado Hills, CA / Oak Ridge HS

At BYU
JUNIOR - (2008): A 2008 All-America candidate ... a candidate for Offensive Player-of-the-Year and All-Mountain West Conference honors ... named to the Biletnikoff Award watch list ... recorded his first touchdown reception of the season in BYUs 28-27
win over Washington ... scored two touchdowns in each of three games
against UCLA, Wyoming and Utah State .... totaled a new career-high 155
receiving yards against New Mexico ... recorded eight consecutive 100
yard receiving games against UCLA, Wyoming, Utah State, New Mexico, TCU, UNLV, CSU and SDSU ... eight consecutive games sets a new MWC and BYU record ... returned the opening kickoff against UNLV for a career-long 75 yards ... caught all three touchdown receptions in the first half against CSU.

SOPHOMORE - (2007): Earned 2007 Academic All-Mountain West Conference honors ... earned letterman honors as a sophomore ... earned second team All-Mountain West conference honors as a sophomore and earned honorable mention All-MWC honors as a kick returner ... led the roster with 56 receptions for 946 yards, averaging nearly 73 yards per game ... totaled a season-high 126 yards receiving in the Cougars' 17-10 win over Utah, including a 49-yard reception that set up the go-ahead touchdown ... credited with six games of over 100 yards receiving ... produced four straight 100-yard receiving games, including 111 yards against CSU, 109 yards against TCU, 102 yards against Wyoming, 126 yards against Utah and 107 yards against UCLA in the Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl ... was named the 2007 Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl MVP ... led the Mountain West Conference with seven touchdown receptions on the season ... named the MWC Offensive Player of the Week after racking up a record 366 all-purpose yards against Tulsa, including 237 return yards against the Golden Hurricane ... broke Pete Van Valkenburg's 35-year-old record with 366 all-purpose yards against Tulsa ... set the MWC single-game record for all-purpose yards (against Tulsa) ... averaged 25.8 yards per kick return.

FRESHMAN - (2004): Named a Second Team All-American by The Sporting News ... named Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year ... named Honorable Mention All-MWC ... holds the BYU freshman record for touchdown receptions (eight) and receiving yards (771) ... the national freshman statistical leader (4.8 receptions per game) ... led BYU in receptions (53) and touchdowns (eight) ... second on team with 771 receiving yards ... caught three passes for 54 yards including a 42-yard touchdown grab in his collegiate debut against Notre Dame ... led the Cougars with eight catches for 49 yards against Stanford ... caught four passes for 36 yards against top-ranked USC ... caught five passes for 94 yards including a 57-yard touchdown reception in game against No. 21 Boise State ... had a 40-yard touchdown reception against Colorado State ... posted a career high with 10 receptions for 70 yards against UNLV ... had three catches for 74 yards including a 40-yard touchdown reception from running back Curtis Brown against Wyoming ... collected six catches for 82 yards and a touchdown in victory over Air Force ... had three catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns against San Diego State including a career-best 82-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter ... led the Cougars with four receptions for 83 yards against New Mexico ... pulled in three catches for 74 yards and a touchdown against No. 5 Utah.

Before BYU
Earned a 4.0 grade-point average ... a PrepStar and SuperPrep All-American ... named the Sacramento Bee's Most Valuable Player ... voted Northern California's Most Valuable Player ... an all-metro selection ... a fist-team all-section and all-state selection ... a top-5 nominee for the 2003 California Mr. Football award ... recorded 60 receptions for 978 yards as a senior ... credited with 24 touchdowns, including 18 touchdown receptions in his final season at Oak Ridge HS ... totaled 56 receptions for 857 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior ... posted 1,654 all-purpose yards (973 yards receiving, 368 yards rushing and 313 return yards) as a senior ... credited with 196 points ... defensively totaled 53 tackles, including 26 solo takedowns ... credited with two interceptions ... ranked fifth among receivers in the West by PrepStar magazine.

Personal
Father played football at BYU from 1979-1982 and in the CLF (Hamilton Tigercats) ... brother Zac played receiver for the Cougars ... parents are Scott and Nicole Collie ... father, Scott, was a receiver for the COugars from 1979-82 ... an Eagle Scout ... served a church mission in Buenos Aires, Argentina ... married to Brooke Pendleton ... recruited by Stanford, Arizona, Arizona State and Washington State, Oregon State, Colorado, Utah, and UNLV.

<A href="http://www.byucougars.com/ChatArchive.jsp?ID=27" target="_blank">
Player Chat: August 13, 2008</A>

Statistics 2008 GAME BY GAME
OPPONENT Rec Yds TD Long Avg/R
NO. IOWA 7 80 0 30 11.4
WASHINGTON 5 74 1 38 14.8
UCLA 10 110 2 37 11.0
WYOMING 8 122 2 62 15.3
UTAH STATE 8 132 2 76 16.5
NEW MEXICO 9 155 1 58 17.2
TCU 6 116 0 49 19.3
UNLV 7 113 0 30 16.7
CSU 9 156 3 58 17.3
SDSU 9 127 2 61 14.1

Yr Gms Rec Yds TD Long Avg./R Avg./G
2004 11 53 771 8 82 14.5 70.1
2007 13 56 946 7 66 16.9 72.8
2008 10 78 1185 13 76 15.2 118.5
TOTAL 34 187 2902 28 82 15.5 85.4

CAREER BESTS
Rec: 10 (vs. UNLV, Oct. 8, 2004) Twice
Yds: 156 (at CSU; Nov. 1, 2008)
TD: 3 (at CSU; Nov. 1, 2008)
LNG: 82 (vs. San Diego State; Nov. 6, 2004)
</PRE>


Several video clips of Austin can be found here: http://www.byucougars.com/Profile.jsp?ID=2127



I also found a couple of interesting blurbs about him on the following draft site, and I have included the text below.


http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=3285 9&amp;draftyear=2010&amp;genpos=WR

Edited by: Colonel_Reb

 

[backrow]

is it pretty safe to assume that Austin is staying for his senior year?

 

[Colonel_Reb]

I thinkhe will staybackrow. I sure haven't heard anything to the contrary.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

Austin just had a 70 yard punt return!

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

Michael Crabtree won the Biletnikoff award again. Crabtree had almost 300 fewer yards on 2 less receptions than Austin Collie, but had an edge in TDs 18 to 15. Dez Bryant and Jeremy Maclin also got more votes than Collie for the Biletnikoff. Bryant had 21 fewer catches than Collie 95 to 74 and around 100 fewer yards, but 3 more TDs (18 to 15). Maclin had the same number of receptions as Collie (95), but about 200 less yards and only had 12 TDs to Collies 15. Dez Bryant had the most WR TDs in the FBS with 19. When you also consider that Michael Crabtree has a better NFL prospect QB throwing him the ball than Collie and Collie's superior stats; I think we can argue Collie was snubbed by The EVIL Luginbill ESPN caste clowns!

Edited by: ToughJ.Riggins

 

[Gi-15]

Wow, I myself would have put both Bryant and Collie before Crabtree this year. Guess you can't deny the MSM hype machine...

 

[Colonel_Reb]

Wow, I myself would have put both Bryant and Collie before Crabtree this year. Guess you can't deny the MSM hype machine...

Yeah, no kidding! When they effectively refuse to report on awesome white athletes like Collie, you can hang it up. The great thing is that Collie will be back in 2009.

 

[white lightning]

Austin Collie is the best receiver in the nation this year. We all know that. It is a complete joke for him to be left off the final guys. I still applaud him on an incredible season for him and the Cougars. I always root for him but I will have to make one exception. Next Saturday the Cougars play my AZ Wildcats in the Vegas Bowl. I will root for Collie to play good, but for Gronkowski and the Cats to win the game. Sorry Col. Reb.

 

[celticdb15]

With Collie and Shipley coming back next year, Next year could be the first year in a while where the best two recievers in the contry will be white!

McCoy and Shipley will get hyped up being from Texas, i hope that BYU can really put it together next year and go undefeated.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

No problem white lightning!

I will enjoy watching that game as well. jared was right, Rob is a "manbeast." He is an awesome weapons for UA. The Vegas Bowl should be a good one to watch, even if it is BYU's 4th year in a row to be there.

 

[Guest]

I guess that leaves little ole' me to be the voice of reason and objectivity.

Brigham Young built an impressive record by beating creampuffs.. the likes of whom weren't on Crabtree's, Bryant's, and Maclin's schedules in any regularity. Collie, by extentson and through no fault of his own, benefitted from the weakness of BYU's opponents, and it negatively impacts how he's viewed. No grand conspiracy. It happens all the time.

They played 11 Division 1-A teams. Only 3 of them are above .500, and they got crushed by 2 of those 3 above .500 teams. The 1-A teams they beat had a combined 36-72 record. That factored into post-season awards.

Last year, Colt Brennen led the nation in total offense (422.5), touchdown passes (58), passing efficiency (185.96), points responsible for (27.7), completion percentage (72.6%), passing yards (5,549) and passing yards per game (396.4). He broke or tied 18 NCAA, 17 WAC and 41 school records, and went undefeated in the regular season.. but only placed 6th in the Heisman because of the weakness of his schedule.


BYU was only 114th out of 120 teams as far as strength of schedule.

http://www.gberatings.com/sos/


Oklahoma - 7th
Missouri - 29th
Texas Tech - 70th

 

[celticdb15]

Good point Osgood. BYU had that high profile upset of UCLA(at the time it was). Other than that they got creamed by Utah and TCU. I hope next year the Mountain West can step up its game and i would also like for BYU to schedule a team from the Big Ten or perhaps the Big East.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

So it is ok that Collie wasn't even mentioned all year? Ha! Nice try Osgood. I never heard his name even mentioned as being one of the best receivers in college football, which he clearly was.


The Mountain West was up this year,just ask the Pac-10. AlthoughBYU had a weak schedule, it shouldn't keep Austin Collie out of the discussion all-together. That he wasn't in the conversation is further proof of the Caste System.

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

Yeah and Texas Tech had the 70th toughest schedule as you yourself just admitted; that's weaker than an average schedule for The FBS. And Texas Tech also got creamed by Oklahoma in a very disappointing game. Collie was more deserving IMO than Crabtree this year and for Jeremy Maclin to get more votes than Collie is ridiculous; just compare the stats! And to put further holes in your argument Missouri got beat by Kansas this year and finished lower in the BCS ranks than BYU this year; so there falls out your argument.

Edited by: ToughJ.Riggins

 

[Guest]

Yeah and Texas Tech had the 70th toughest schedule as you yourself just admitted; that's weaker than an average schedule for The FBS. And Texas Tech also got creamed by Oklahoma in a very disappointing game.

I didn't "admit" TT was 70th, I clearly stated they were 70th. BYU was 114th. There were only 6 teams with weaker schedules. Whether it was just or unjust, Austin was penalized for that just like Colt was penalized for Hawaii's weak schedule last year.

Oklahoma's the #1 ranked team in the coaches poll, and creamed everyone they played except Texas. The voters were willing to give Texas Tech that mulligan considering they won every other game they played, including Texas.

Collie was more deserving IMO than Crabtree this year and for Jeremy Maclin to get more votes than Collie is ridiculous; just compare the stats!

Your level of competition contributes to those stats. Putting up numbers against Big 12 opponents is much harder than putting up stats against the MWC. That's why a premium is placed on Crabtree, Bryant, and Maclin's numbers. It happens ALL THE TIME.. which is why I raised the Colt Brennan example.

And to put further holes in your argument Missouri got beat by Kansas this year and finished lower in the BCS ranks than BYU this year; so there falls out your argument.

Nonsense. You have to actually PUT holes in my argument to put "further" holes in my argument. Again, Maclin put his numbers up against more respected competition than did Collie. No one respects who BYU played, that's why their players get no love.

Shipley got more pub than Collie with much less production because he played in the Big 12 as well.

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

Sorry Double post. My internet connection appears to be funny.Edited by: ToughJ.Riggins

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

You do make some good points Osgoodfan now that you have responded. But you can really make an arguments for the other side as well.

Crabtree's QB Harrell is better than Hall for instance; just as Shipley's is also better. Missouri's loss to Kansas showed that they weren't as elite a team as it might seem. And Maclin had significantly weaker stats than Collie.

And Yes Texas Tech beat Texas, but I would bet that Texas would beat Tech 8 out of 10 times. Texas had some key dropped passes in that game.

Collie's season was incredible this year and I believe, although it is an opinion, that he should have won the Biletnikoff; his stats were better than anyones by enough to cancel out the weak competition...AND Collie had a 100 yard game against Utah in the Mountain West Championship even though they lost which is another indicator that he shows up in big games. The Mountain West was a legit conference this year with 3 teams in the top 25.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

So Osgood, how about it? Does having a weak schedule andplaying in the MWC warrant NO mention from the national mediaall seasonDESPITE leading the country in receiving yardage FOR ALMOST THE ENTIRE SEASON?


BTW, "no love" doesn't mean the same thing as NO mention. "Love" as you put it,is totally different than a simple acknowledgement.

 

[Guest]

You do make some good points Osgoodfan now that you have responded. But you can really make an arguments for the other side as well.

Oh I totally agree. I'm not advocating for either side. I'm just giving the reason Collie wasn't chosen.

A couple days ago, jaxvid stated people on this board are fanatical about white athletes. I'm led to believe that fanaticism, which there's nothing wrong with, of course, causes people to lose their objectivity when comparing white and black athletes.

So on a hunch I searched for Jordy Nelson posts from last year. You said you thought Nelson was better than Crabtree even though Crabtree had 350 more yards, and 11 more touchdowns. So in other words, the numbers matter this year, when the yardage leader is white, but they didn't matter last year when the yardage leader was black.

You guys are pre-programmed to blame race for everything. A lot of blacks do the same exact thing on the other side. I'm not liked on this board because I post without bias. There were several black guys with better numbers than Crabtree, but they played in weak conferences as well. That why they didn't get a sniff of the Biletnikoff either.

 

[Guest]

So Osgood, how about it? Does having a weak schedule and playing in the MWC warrant NO mention from the national media all season DESPITE leading the country in receiving yardage FOR ALMOST THE ENTIRE SEASON?


BTW, "no love" doesn't mean the same thing as NO mention. "Love" as you put it, is totally different than a simple acknowledgement.

Because it's BYU. They're a Mormon school, in an über-weak conference, who played the 114th toughest schedule. I've never even heard of Naaman Roosevelt, Chris Williams, Kenny Britt, or Jarrett Dillard, despite their having tremendous seasons. They're black, I believe. Do we blame race that they didn't get any pub? Or because they play for Buffalo, New Mexico State, Rutgers, and Rice respectfully, in lower-echelon Mickey Mouse conferences?

Jordy Nelson got plenty of ink last year. He's white, no? Which conference was he in? Jordan Shipley's, Michael Crabtree's, Dez Bryant's, and Jeremy Maclin's, correct?

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

You do make some good points Osgoodfan now that you have responded. But you can really make an arguments for the other side as well.

Oh I totally agree. I'm not advocating for either side. I'm just giving the reason Collie wasn't chosen.

A couple days ago, jaxvid stated people on this board are fanatical about white athletes. I'm led to believe that fanaticism, which there's nothing wrong with, of course, causes people to lose their objectivity when comparing white and black athletes.

So on a hunch I searched for Jordy Nelson posts from last year. You said you thought Nelson was better than Crabtree even though Crabtree had 350 more yards, and 11 more touchdowns. So in other words, the numbers matter this year, when the yardage leader is white, but they didn't matter last year when the yardage leader was black.

You guys are pre-programmed to blame race for everything. A lot of blacks do the same exact thing on the other side. I'm not liked on this board because I post without bias. There were several black guys with better numbers than Crabtree, but they played in weak conferences as well. That why they didn't get a sniff of the Biletnikoff either.

Osgood, you are saying things about me that just aren't true. I thought that Jordy was more "TALENTED" than Crabtree, but that doesn't mean I thought he should have won the Biletnikoff. Crabtree's stats were significantly better (although he did have a better QB throwing him the ball).

But now that I have seen Crabtree more I believe he may be as talented as Jordy. Jordy is faster than Crabtree and bigger. I would also give Jordy an edge in run after catch ability because of his field awareness and slightly better straight lined speed...

Crabtree although a little smaller is just as physical and has a better first move and is above Jordy as a route runner. Not sure who has better hands they both have phenomenal ones.

I believe they can both be superstars in the NFL, but Crabtree can get open on almost any play because of his burst and off the line ability. Jordy would be more of a downfield threat, but will probably never lead the NFL in catches like Crabtree could.

Bottom line: Jordy is only going to improve and I believe should replace Driver as a starter the season after next b/c he will likely prove better! If Jordy can improve his only solid getting off the line ability he will be a superstar b/c he is getting good as a route runner now.

And last but not least: You want my opinion on who is more talented between Crabtree and Collie; I will go with Crabtree, but Collie could be an Issac Bruce of the Rams or Anquan Bolden type #2 possession WR in the NFL.

 

[FieldThrower]

Michael Crabtree won the Biletnikoff award again. Crabtree had almost 300 fewer yards on 2 less receptions than Austin Collie, but had an edge in TDs 18 to 15. Dez Bryant and Jeremy Maclin also got more votes than Collie for the Biletnikoff. Bryant had 21 fewer catches than Collie 95 to 74 and around 100 fewer yards, but 3 more TDs (18 to 15). Maclin had the same number of receptions as Collie (95), but about 200 less yards and only had 12 TDs to Collies 15. Dez Bryant had the most WR TDs in the FBS with 19. When you also consider that Michael Crabtree has a better NFL prospect QB throwing him the ball than Collie and Collie's superior stats; I think we can argue Collie was snubbed by The EVIL Luginbill ESPN caste clowns!

ESPN is snubbing the whole MWC right now for going over to CBS-affiliated CBSCS, Versus, and MTN networks. If he played for the WAC or MAC (which are content to play Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday games on ESPN) he may have gotten more votes (A Ball State receiver won a few years back). ESPN practically runs the awards show, so no doubt they have clout in who gets picked and who doesn't.

Edited by: FieldThrower

 

[FieldThrower]

I guess that leaves little ole' me to be the voice of reason and objectivity.

Brigham Young built an impressive record by beating creampuffs.. the likes of whom weren't on Crabtree's, Bryant's, and Maclin's schedules in any regularity. Collie, by extentson and through no fault of his own, benefitted from the weakness of BYU's opponents, and it negatively impacts how he's viewed. No grand conspiracy. It happens all the time.

They played 11 Division 1-A teams. Only 3 of them are above .500, and they got crushed by 2 of those 3 above .500 teams. The 1-A teams they beat had a combined 36-72 record. That factored into post-season awards.

Last year, Colt Brennen led the nation in total offense (422.5), touchdown passes (58), passing efficiency (185.96), points responsible for (27.7), completion percentage (72.6%), passing yards (5,549) and passing yards per game (396.4). He broke or tied 18 NCAA, 17 WAC and 41 school records, and went undefeated in the regular season.. but only placed 6th in the Heisman because of the weakness of his schedule.


BYU was only 114th out of 120 teams as far as strength of schedule.

http://www.gberatings.com/sos/


Oklahoma - 7th
Missouri - 29th
Texas Tech - 70th

The MWC is the 4-6th best league in the country right now. They went 7-1 vs. the Pac-10, and have a about a .700 record against teams from BCS auto-qualifier conferences. BYU lost to 2 underranked teams, period. Utah should be top 2-4 and in should probably be in the NC game (they and the best undefeated, beating 3 top 25 teams), and TCU top 10, but instead Utah is about 6-7, and TCU is 12 or so.

BTW, Collie had 100+ yards receiving against both TCU and Utah, as well as 8 other teams on his "weak" schedule.

The Big 12 has not even faced the MWC this year, outside of Oklahoma vs. TCU. Oklahoma is legitimately a National Title contender, in spite of the Texas loss. They have dominated and scored 60+ in 5 straight games. TCU held them to their lowest output offensively, which means it has a better defense than all the Big 12 teams OU has faced. Then again, that should come as no surprise, as they rank #1 in Rush defense, #4 in PED defense, and #2 in scoring defense.

BTW, the BYU-Utah game was not as bad as the score indicated. It was within a score at the end of the 3rd, and had it not been for a bunch of picks thrown in the fourth, would have stayed close. The stats for both teams were nearly identical outside of the score and turnovers.

BYU's SOS was hurt by playing 4 horrible teams - Washington, Wyoming, USU, and SDSU. Long (which came from Oklahoma, BTW) was throwing the Aztecs down the crapper before getting canned, and BYU demolished them. USU gave BYU a closer game than they'd like, but they are in-state "rivals" and always manage to play up for Utah and BYU. Wyoming got blanked 44-0, in a game that was far from perfect for the Cougars. Oh yeah, Wyoming walked in to Neyland Stadium and beat the Volunteers. Washington and Wazzu have the worst records in FBS, but they seemed a lot better when they had Jake Locker (a white Michael Vick, minus the dog fighting) running scrambles all over the field.

UNI is a pretty good FCS team (12-2), and ranks higher than almost a third of the FBS teams in the Sagarin.

I'd put the top half of the MWC right now up against all of the non-auto-qualifying conferences and divisions, and possibly all of the AQ leagues besides the SEC-East and Big-XII South. It has 3 teams in the top 20, and and Air Force could very well be a top 25 team right now had they beaten Utah, Navy and Houston (all were decided by one score/possession). Right now they stand at 8-4, which isn't too shabby.

For a top 20 team, a #70 schedule has very little difference from a #120 schedule. 75% of teams you play will still be blowouts and easy wins, with maybe 2-4 games where the opponent can seriously threaten you. BYU had only 3-4 games in the regular season where it had a serious chance of losing, while the same can be said about the teams Missouri, Oklahoma State, and Texas Tech.Edited by: FieldThrower

 

[Colonel_Reb]

Osgood, BYU is a ranked team, and Kenny Britt had way more publicity than Austin Collie. BYU hasfinished with 11 wins and asa ranked team for the last 3 years and Austin was MWC Freshman of The Year in 2004 and a Second Team All American as well. Its not like the press doesn't know about him. When BYU was on a roll earlier in the season he still didn't get any press. They didn't ignore him because he plays at BYU, or in the MWC, which isn't "uber-weak." They ignore him because he is white and you know it. The problem is that you aren't intellectually honest enough to admit it.

 

[FieldThrower]

Well, despite his pro snubbing, Mike Hass did get more publicity as a college player than Collie did. Oregon State is a small time program, IMO, compared to BYU (BYU's Coach Mendenhall played there as a JC transfer, only because BYU didn't recruit him out of HS). They do play in a better, more recognized league though, so their players get more hype.

I know that the media was hyping up Samardzija heavily, but then they are always pumping ND players. Even when they are 3-9, ESPN will do a 30-minute story on their fall from greatness, and if and when they'll ever return. Media is part business, part politics. They go for stories that increase their bottom line in addition to pushing various political agendas. Edited by: FieldThrower